The Waldo Tryst Part II, The Date and Twenty Five
by TracyT
Summary: Kate and Rick go on their date-and beyond!
1. Chapter 1

Title: The Waldo Tryst Part II, The Date and Twenty-Five Days

Author: TracyT

Rating: PG-15

Category: Romance, Angst, Fluff

Summary: Kate and Rick go on their date—and beyond!

Spoilers: Food to Die For, Deadly Game

Archive: yes, please

Feedback to:

Warning: Serious fluff alert ahead! A continuation of a post-Deadly Game Caskett fantasy.

Author's note: Several people asked for the date, so I got to thinking…

#######

The elevator slid down to ground level and they pushed through the glass doors of Kate's building. The cold air made them both gasp a little. "Whoa, a little chilly tonight." Rick gave a shiver, his breath misting in the cold.

"Freezing." Ice and salt crunched under their feet and little piles of snow bordered the sidewalk.

A car was waiting at the curb with a drive leaning against it. As they approached Rick said: "Kate, meet Leo. Leo, Kate." Leo, to put it mildly was HUGE. He had sandy red hair and a beard and was close to seven feet tall.

Leo put two fingertips to the brim of his cap and said softly, "Ma'am." He opened the door for them to slide in. As he was making his way around the car to the driver's side, Kate took the opportunity to ask, "Professional Wrestler?"

Castle grinned. "At one time. Now he owns his own livery service. How did you know?"

Kate gave a little shrug. "Just a guess."

As the car pulled away from the curb, Kate tried not to be nervous, but it must have shown because Rick took her hand and patted it. "It's going to be fine," he said softly.

She gave him a weak smile. "I know, it's just…"

"Come on, we're gonna knock 'em dead, you'll see." Kate just got a better grip on his hand and turned toward the window so he wouldn't see her trepidation.

In no time they were approaching the new restaurant, Zen. Kate knew they were almost there by the huge crowd of people gathered in front of a place with a lot of bright lights.

"Oh, man," Kate gulped. Suddenly dinner, a show, or making out in the back of the movie theater sounded much more preferable to this.

"Yep, here we go," Rick said softly as the car slid up to the curb.

Leo turned in his seat to say, "Let me get in position before you get out, Mr. Castle." He got out of the car and came around to their side to open the door. The car must have some soundproofing, Kate thought, because suddenly the noise from the sidewalk flooded into the car.

Rick leaned in to say to her, "Let me get out first. We have to stand for a moment for the photogs, but then Leo will lead us into the restaurant, okay?" He got out before she could answer, which was probably a good thing, she decided.

The crowd cheered loudly when they recognized Rick and she could see flashes from cameras. This was his world, a world she never expected to be a part of. Then he reached down to help her out of the car and bedlam ensued. The cheers became louder and the flashes multiplied exponentially. "Just smile," Rick said around a grin. She did, holding his arm and leaning into him a little, showing possession. Paparazzi yelled out questions, but she could only make out her name and Rick's. The rest was just noise. She gave Rick an inquisitive look and he shook his head. "I always just pretend they're speaking a foreign language. Ignore them."

"Ready, sir?" Leo turned toward them. Rick nodded and then Leo was bulldozing his way through the crowd and they were left to follow in his wake. One intrepid reporter tried to face the wrath of Leo, but was pushed back so hard he tumbled back into a crowd of people. Leo made it to the door, with them close behind, and shepherded them inside.

The noise and chaos from outside was suddenly muted when the doors closed. She turned to thank Leo, but apparently he hadn't come in with them. She looked up at Castle.

"Wow, that was…"

"Insane? Yeah, it always is." He was grinning.

"Rick Castle!" An accented, booming voice called out. They turned to see a very tall, very handsome man with silver hair, approach. Unlike most of the other patrons, who were in formal suits and tuxes, he was wearing black pants and shirtsleeves. Sleeves which were rolled up to his elbows. Despite that he exuded an air of elegance and sophistication.

"Emile!" Rick welcomed the man with open arms and gave him a hug. "Spectacular opening, my friend."

Emile nodded, pleased. "Yes, yes, I am very happy the launch is going so well. And who is this lovely creature?" He turned his attention to Kate.

"Ah, Emile, this is my beautiful Kate. Kate Beckett. Kate, meet Emile Renault, proprietor of this establishment."

Kate cheeks felt a little warm with all the flattery, but she smiled and held out her hand. "Very nice to meet you, Mr. Renault, and congratulations."

"Ah, you are the one responsible, eh?" He shook a finger at her.

Kate frowned, confused. "I'm sorry?"

"I saw my friend Rick, what was it? Last week, the week before? I had to ask him what—or whom—had made him so happy, because it was plain he was happier than I had ever seen him. He claimed to not know what I was talking about, but I suspected he had someone new in his life. Now I see you and it all becomes clear." He beamed at her.

Kate didn't know exactly how to respond to that, so she just smiled, and turned to look at Rick. He shrugged.

"Yes, now you know my secret." He put a hand on Kate's back.

"Marvelous." He clapped his hands together. "I have a very special table all ready for you. Jonathan will seat you. Enjoy." A man dressed all in black instantly appeared and led them to their table. Kate looked around her and realized the place was a veritable Who's Who of New York. Even the mayor was here.

Jonathan held her chair out for her and then did the same for Rick. "There are no menus tonight. We will be bringing selections of all of our food out to you. The waiters will bring around champagne to start, but if you prefer something else?"

"Oh, I think champagne will be fine, don't you?" He looked at Kate.

"Oh, yes, champagne is fine." When Jonathan left she leaned forward to ask Rick, "'Champagne to start?'"

"Champagne with the appetizers, wine with the main course, Brandy with dessert."

"Wow."

"Hey I thought you could drink most people under the table?"

"Maybe a few years ago. It's been a while," She admitted.

He leaned forward with a raised eyebrow. "Well, then, madam, I look forward to taking advantage of your drunken state later in the evening." He even twirled an invisible moustache.

She lightly whacked the back of his hand with a spoon and gave him a cheeky grin. "I'm counting on it."

The appetizers were brought out first. Escargot with drawn butter, baked brie in puff pastry, fig and olive tapenade and chevre truffles. It was all wonderful. She knew Rick was a foodie, now she could see why.

"Mmm, so good," Kate commented after sampling each one.

"Isn't it great? Hey," Rick held up his empty champagne glass. "I think we need a refill." He looked around, but the waiters with the trays of champagne were on the other side of the room. "It'll take forever for them to make their way back here, let me see if I can't snag us a couple of glasses." He took the napkin from his lap and put it on the table before rising and heading across the room toward the unsuspecting waiters.

Kate watched him go and turned back to her food to find someone sitting in Rick's chair. It was an overweight middle-aged woman wearing a loud purple dress and too much makeup. "Ms. Beckett?" Her voice was gravelly.

"Yes?"

"Barbara Humphrey, New York Post." Great, the paper that had 'outed' them.

Although the woman held out her hand, Kate just nodded her acknowledgement. "Ms. Humphrey." She said it in the same voice she used for interrogations in the box.

"It's so nice to see you two come out of hiding and finally go public," the woman gave her a crocodile smile.

"Not hiding, we just prefer…"

"But you are a couple, yes?"

"Yes we are, but…"

Ignoring her completely, Humphrey continued, "Such a romantic story. A successful but lonely writer and his muse find true love together." She beamed at Kate.

"Ms. Humphrey…" Kate was quickly going from irritated to downright pissed off. She was about to tell Ms. Humphrey the best part about being a homicide detective—she knew where to hide the bodies—when…

"So, can we safely call you the future, third Mrs. Castle?"

"What? Whoa! Wait just a…" A champagne glass was placed in front of her.

"Correction. That would be 'third and last.'" Rick smiled down at them. When both women looked at him agape, he added, "Well, they do say the third time's a charm." When he caught Kate's eye he added, "That is, should the subject come up between us, which it DEFINITELY has not yet."

"Can I quote you on that, Mr. Castle?" Barbara Humphrey asked, clearly sensing an exclusive.

Rick took a sip of champagne and said, "You may." Barbara Humphrey was out of the chair so fast it was like she had been shot out of a cannon, cell phone in hand, clearly running off to find a quiet place to call in her exclusive scoop. Rick calmly took his seat and helped himself to another puff pastry.

"What did you just do? What did you just say?" Kate sputtered.

"Well, you wanted to go public."

"But marriage? I thought we were just at the beginning of our relationship."

Rick sighed and put his fork down to take her hand. "It's not as if it's not something I've been wanting to talk to you about, I just hadn't found the right opportunity."

"And you think this was it? Are you on crack?" Kate struggled to keep her voice down.

Rick looked at her silently for a few moments before running the pad of his thumb across her knuckles. "Do you love me?"

"What? You know I do. That's not the point…"

"Do you love me?"

Kate took a deep breath. "Yes, yes, I love you."

"Okay. I love you, too. Maybe I jumped the gun here, but was I really so far off the mark?"

Kate forced herself to be calm. "Rick, I just wish you had not announced it so publicly before we even had a chance to discuss it together, okay? The idea tonight was to get them off our backs, not pour gasoline onto the fire."

"Point taken, but it will be nothing more than a small squib on the gossip page tomorrow. It's not going to be that big a deal, trust me. You'll see."

#######

The next day Kate decided she was going to kill him. Slowly. The phone had not stopped ringing either at her place, on her cell, or—worst of all—at the station. Ryan and Esposito had a field day, calling out in high voices, "Oh, Ms. Beckett, you have another call from (fill in the rag sheet of your choice here)," or something to that effect. She had lost all credibility, she realized. Captain Montgomery had threatened to issue a press release telling all news media that if they did not cease and desist calling on the subject, he'd personally have them shot, but sadly, he wasn't serious.

As the phone rang yet again, Kate let her head drop onto her desk with a thump and moaned out loud.

#######

Rick, on the other hand, was quietly reading over the morning paper. He was gazing down at the shot of he and Kate standing beside their car, smiling. The caption read, "_Is author Richard Castle planning his third set of nuptials with stunning Kate Beckett? According to him, that may well be the case. Could we see a Christmas wedding for the couple? Time will tell."_

His cell rang and he checked to see who it was first. He'd had to shut off the home phone and his public cell due to all the calls, but this one was known only to family.

"Mom?"

"Richard Castle! Have you seen the gossip page of the Post this morning? How could you?"

"How could I what? I thought you liked Kate."

"Oh, don't be silly. I do like Kate. I love Kate. What I don't love is finding out about you two being in a near-marriage relationship from the newspaper."

"Oh, yeah, I was meaning to talk to you about that."

"And what about Alexis? Is she to find out from her school mates? Or does she already know?"

He hadn't thought about that. "No, no, she doesn't know yet, but I will tell her before any of her friends do. The whole thing has really been blown out of proportion, though. Uh, guess this is a good time to tell you I invited Kate and her dad over for Christmas."

Martha sighed loudly. "Well that will be fine, dear, especially under the circumstances. Richard?"

"Yes, Mother?"

"Are you happy? Really happy?"

Castle breathed a sigh of relief. "Yeah, really, really happy."

"I'm so glad, darling, but you know Kate's not going to like this one bit."

"Oh, I know." Which is why he hadn't called her yet.

Gotta go. Chet's taking me Christmas shopping."

He hung up and sent Kate a text. It said: "Good Morning. How is your day going?" Testing the waters. Technology, he decided, was a great thing. Probably not the best idea to talk to her in person right now.

Kate texted back almost immediately. All it said was, "You are a dead man."

"D'Oh." He grimaced. Then, from upstairs he heard, "Dad!" Alexis came bounding down the stairs, hair a mess, clearly upset, phone in hand. "You're getting married and you didn't tell me?"

Rick sat up. "What? No, no, not getting married anytime soon, okay? How did you know? I was going to talk to you this morning.

"I had texts from all my friends before I ever got out of bed." She held out the phone in illustration.

"Damn technology!"

#######

They finally defused the situation by issuing a joint statement to the press saying basically, yes, they were a couple now and they thanked all those who had 'expressed an interest' (Kate balked at that part, but Rick convinced her they needed to be diplomatic if they were going to back off the press), but despite what had been reported they had no plans to marry and had not yet even discussed the subject.

Christmas, thank goodness, was a quiet one, but they spent it together. Neither Kate nor her father had put up a tree since her mother's death, but Kate found herself enjoying helping Rick and Alexis put up the tree at his place. Alexis had all sorts of special ornaments bought or given to them over the years and had to show Kate each one before placing it on the tree. Rick got the ladder to place the angel on the top, and Martha made her special egg nog, which, Kate thought, could remove varnish from just about anything.

When her dad came over, she was touched at how Rick and his family made him feel welcome. Rick and Chet watched football with him, and Martha and he discussed some mutual friends. How Martha knew about the friends they shared, Kate had no idea, but her dad seemed to enjoy himself and for that she was grateful.

Later, her dad had gone home, so had Chet and Martha, and Alexis had gone to bed "suspiciously early" according to Rick. She and Rick lay on the couch together with just the lights from the Christmas tree illuminating the room.

She was completely and utterly at peace for the moment. Rick brushed her hair back and kissed the back of her head. "Good Christmas?" He asked.

"Mmm, wonderful Christmas. Best Christmas in years."

"Good," he sounded pleased. "For me, too."

#######

In January, shortly after the New Year, Kate lay awake in the middle of the night, watching the snow fall through the window at the St. Regis hotel. The clue for this one had been, 'Is there a St. Kelly?' Happily, Waldo was still going strong, just not as often as before, but at the moment, Kate was not happy.

Rick was leaving in the morning for a European book tour that would take him away from her for 25 days. Twenty-five days! He'd asked her to go with him, but she couldn't go. She had two murder investigations going and she had to testify in a trial from a previous case. There was no way she could get away, even for a short time and she was already missing Rick terribly.

They were spooned together. She lifted the hand on the arm that was around her and kissed it softly. He had become so much a part of her life, what was she going to do without him for twenty-five days?

"Hey." His voice was soft in her ear. "What's wrong?"

"What's wrong?" She sniffled. "Twenty-five days, that's what's wrong."

"I know." He continued stroking her hair. "It's going to go fast, trust me. It will be over before you know it."

"No it won't." She hugged the arm around her.

He kissed the back of her head. "Marry me."

"No."

"Come on, marry me."

"No. Richard," She maneuvered around until she was facing him. "My agreeing to marry you will not change the fact that we will not see each other for a month."

"Not a month, twenty-five days."

"Okay, five days short of a month."

Rick was quiet for a moment. "Do you want me to see if I can cancel?"

"What? No! I know you have to do what you have to do, I just don't have to be happy about it."

Rick sighed. "I'm not too happy about it myself, but I can't think of an alternative."

"Neither can I."

"We will talk every day, text every day. I'll send you pictures-you can send me pictures." His tone became suggestive. He waggled his eyebrows at her.

She smacked his chest lightly in retaliation. "But I won't be able to touch you." She said sadly.

"Well, you can touch me now." He stroked her arm.

She kissed him, then kissed him again, deeper and longer. Things got a little heated and she pushed him back to straddle him. She kissed him again and said, "We'd better make this good. It has to last us twenty-five days."

Rick smiled, stroking her back. "Well, as far as I'm concerned, we're always good, but I'll certainly do my best," and pulled her down to devour her mouth.

#######

The next day they met Martha and Alexis for breakfast, and then all of them were taking Rick out to the airport. Leo was driving.

Kate only picked at her food. She just couldn't eat much. Of course, he noticed, and leaned over at one point to say softly, "You need to eat something."

She shook her head. "Not hungry." He squeezed her arm and then turned to answer something Alexis had asked.

Leo got them to the airport in record time. Kate recalled a short conversation she'd had with him after her first date with Rick. Rick had stopped to talk to Emile while Leo had helped Kate into the car. She'd thanked him for running interference at the restaurant, and he'd turned and said: "No problem. I'd do anything for Mr. Castle, ma'am. He gave me the seed money to start my business, no interest. He didn't even want me to pay it back, but as soon as the business was in the black, I paid back every dime." Rick never mentioned it to her and that made her love him all the more.

Leo unloaded Rick's bags and they walked with him onto the concourse. They could only go with him as far as security, of course. It wasn't like the old days where anyone could go to the gate and watch the plane take off.

Rick set his suitcase down and turned toward all of them. "Well, time to take off the shoes and stand in line. I just hope I don't get chosen to get the wand."

He hugged Alexis and his mother and then turned to Kate. She was a little uncomfortable with his family watching. She had her arms crossed in front of her and their eyes met. One corner of his mouth turned up and he said: "If you shake my hand I'm never coming back." She threw her arms around him and held him to her. He rocked her back and forth. "I love you" she whispered.

"I love you, too." He gave her a quick kiss. "Miss me, okay?"

"Definitely. You, too."

"Absolutely."

The announcement came that his flight was in. He said good-bye to them all, and then he was headed through the security line.

Kate stood watching as long as she could see him. After he cleared security he held up his passport and waved with it. She slowly held up one hand. He was gone.

She couldn't move for several moments. She felt entirely lost. What was she going to do without him? An arm went around her. "Come on, darling," Martha said softly. "Come back home with us for a while. I'll make lunch. You didn't eat enough to keep a bird alive at breakfast, don't think I didn't notice." When Kate didn't respond, she put her forehead against Kate's and added, "He'll be back before you know it, you'll see."

Kate seriously doubted that, but she let Martha and Alexis lead her out of the airport and back to the car.

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

Title: The Waldo Tryst Part III, Two Weeks

Author: TracyT

Rating: PG-15

Category: Romance, Angst, Fluff

Summary: Kate and Rick have come to an arrangement.

Spoilers: Food to Die For, Deadly Game

Archive: yes, please

Feedback to:

Warning: Serious fluff and Sap alert ahead! A post-Deadly Game Caskett fantasy.

Author's Note: This is where I put words in Rick's mouth about his past marriages and I give Kate a middle name. High sap alert ahead, diabetics beware!

#######

Two weeks. It had been two weeks but it might as well have been a year. Every morning when Kate woke up she calculated the days until he returned. God, she was pathetic.

At work she could focus on the job, she could push all the personal stuff aside and she was fine. The minute she left the precinct she felt his loss like a punch to the stomach.

It wasn't as if they didn't talk. They did. As soon as he landed in London he'd called her. He texted her 'good morning' every day. They talked all the time, he made sure of that, but still, it wasn't the same.

He texted her after the first book signing. "_Nikki Heat took London by storm…not Derrick Storm, just storm."_

She texted back. "_Sign any breasts today?"_

His response, "_Alas, only a leg. A very nice leg, but a leg."_

Later that became a joke between them. She'd text _'SABT_ (sign any breasts today)?' and he'd come up with some silly answer, which was good, because she really didn't want to know.

Then there was the bad habit she'd gotten into. The habit she'd rather die than admit to anyone. She'd go home and make herself some supper, then she'd take her shower and put his robe on. He'd left a robe at her place and it smelled like him. His soap, his aftershave, and just _him_. She'd put it on and his smell made her feel a little bit like he was still there. Then she'd lie on the couch and watch TV until she fell asleep. She had never been much of a TV watcher, she'd told Castle as much, but with him gone it kept her company. She didn't care what was on, she just turned on whatever came up and stared at it until sleep overtook her. She'd wake up in the middle of the night with all the lights on in her apartment and some infomercial on TV. Usually Johnny Vong. Then she would drag her sorry ass off to bed and get a couple of hours of sleep before she had to get up and go to work.

And then there was the ever-present gossip machine. Just to make matters worse, they printed a blurb about a week and a half after Rick had left saying _"Lovebirds Richard Castle and Kate Beckett seem to have hit the skids. Ricky flew off to Europe for and extended stay, leaving poor Kate on her own here in NYC. Trouble in paradise?"_

Kate had to clear the lump from her throat to respond to Esposito and Ryan who had once again unearthed this little gem. She handed the paper back to Esposito and said, "Fuck 'em. Let them think what they want." She went back to her paperwork, trying not to notice that they hovered for a few moments before leaving her alone. Her vision blurred and she couldn't read the report she was supposedly reading.

How Rick found out about the blurb was beyond her, but he called her that night about it.

"Hey, I heard about the item in the Post today. I am so sorry, Kate."

"No, it's fine." Crap. Her voice wobbled.

"No, it's not. Listen, I have an interview today, do you mind if I mention us, you know, US?"

"No, I guess not. What are you going to say?"

"Leave that to me." That did not inspire her with confidence, but she let it go.

A couple of days later an interview with Rick appeared in the paper. He said as much as he had loved his trip to Europe and how wonderful the people there had been to him, he was looking forward to getting home to his daughter and his 'beautiful Kate.' The interviewer took the bait immediately.

"_Yes, Kate Beckett. There are rumors you two had split up. Any truth to those rumors?"_

"_None whatsoever. She has a very important job and couldn't get away to come with me, and I had obligations here, so we have learned to lead a long-distance relationship for a while. We talk and text about a hundred times a day, but I still miss her like crazy and I'm counting the days until I get home."_

Kate called him immediately. "Hey, I just read your interview."

"Was it okay?"

"It was perfect."

"It's just the truth. I do miss you like crazy, you know."

"Yeah," Kate sighed. "Me, too."

#######

Martha and Alexis kept an eye on her and invited her for meals and shopping trips. She wondered if Rick wasn't behind it, but she hadn't asked them. Ryan and Esposito had started bringing her coffee in the morning. She told them they didn't have to, but they just grinned and kept on doing it. One day at lunch, she was picking at her salad when Lanie grabbed her wrist.

"Okay, that's it. I am sick of you."

"What?" Kate was confused.

"I'm tired of you moping around. You and I are going for drinks tonight, don't argue with me. You need to get out and see some night life." When Kate looked doubtful she added, "Don't make me hurt you."

"Okay, fine, but just one drink, okay? At O'Malley's." O'Malley's was a local place near the precinct.

"Fine, but you have to put on a dress and some makeup, okay?"

Kate made a growling noise at her friend, but finally said, "Fine."

#######

The evening was actually kind of fun. It was just she and Lanie, but it was nice to be out amongst people. Half way through her third jumbo margarita (a big mistake, in retrospect) Lanie said, "Guess who I talked to today?"

"No idea. Who?"

"Tom Demming. He asked about you."

"Oh?" Kate felt a pang of guilt in how she'd ended things with Tom, and then a pang of another sort recalling how later that night her plans for Castle had exploded rather spectacularly in her face.

"Yeah," Lanie sounded coy, running a finger around the rim of her glass, plowing salt. "He actually asked if there was any chance you might hook up with him again. He, uh, saw the blurb in the paper. The one about you and Castle breaking up, not the interview."

Kate's eyebrows rose. "What did you say?"

"I told him, sorry, that ship has sailed. You and Castle are together, you're solid, and you're at it like bunnies." She stuck a salt-covered finger in her mouth and gave Kate a sly grin.

Kate's mouth dropped open. "Shut. Up. You did not!" She smacked her friend in the arm.

"Yes, I most certainly did." When Kate continued to gawk at her, Lanie reluctantly admitted, "Okay, well, that may have not been my EXACT words, but that covers the gist of it, okay?" The gawking did not stop. "Well? Was I lying?"

"You could have left out the bunnies part, but no, you weren't lying."

"Okay then."

Kate huffed out a sigh and said something she probably never would have if not for the margaritas. "No joy in bunnyville right now, that's for sure."

Lanie patted her hand. "Oh, honey, I know you miss him. Just think of it as a hiatus. He'll be back soon, you'll see."

Why did everyone keep saying that to her? That he'd be back in 'no time?' It hadn't gone 'so fast she'd barely miss him.' She DID miss him, and damnit, she was deprived. The truth was, before he left they'd had sex every day. Every single, freakin' day, sometimes—no-_mostly_ more than once a day. Now she was just supposed to go cold turkey? _She wanted him_. Every minute of every day, she wanted him. She didn't want just _anyone _to have sex with, she wanted HIM. And he wouldn't be back for another eleven days. At the thought she almost whimpered.

Her mood suddenly black, she slid off her bar stool and grabbed her coat. "Gotta go," she muttered and headed for the door, trying to get her arm into the sleeve of her coat, which was not cooperating.

"Kate!" She heard Lanie behind her. "Kate, wait!" Lanie grabbed her arm and turned her around. "Come on, come back and finish your drink and we'll split a cab, okay? You can't go walking off out there alone."

"I'll be fine."

"If you mean that gun in your purse, forget it. In your condition you'll end up shooting a street musician or a mime or something just 'cause you don't like the way they look at you." When Kate hesitated, she added, "Come on, we can share deprivation stories if you want." She said this with a wink.

Kate sighed and let Lanie lead her back to the table.

#######

A week later, while she was at work, she got a text from him, '_Is your passport up to date?"_

_ "Yes, why?"_

"_Can you get next Thursday and Friday off?'_

_'I don't know, maybe, why?'_

_ 'Last leg of the tour. Paris. You could come for a long weekend and fly home with me Sunday night. Please? I really want to see you!'_

Paris. She absolutely loved Paris. She'd told him that a long time ago. Ever since her semester abroad in College, she'd been in love with Paris. And the thought of Paris with him…

_'I don't know. I'll ask.'_

Captain Montgomery was all too receptive to her request, making her wonder if he hadn't had a text from Rick before she talked to him—or from the mayor. She _almost _asked him, but decided she wouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth and instead thanked him profusely and went to tell Ryan and Esposito they'd be on their own for a couple of days.

"No problem, we got it," Esposito said.

"Yeah, go, have a good time.," Ryan added.

"Thanks guys." She was touched by their willingness to take up the slack while she was gone.

As she walked away Esposito called out, "And tell our boy Castle he owes us one."

She winced. She hadn't said why she was taking the time off, just that she was taking a couple days vacation time. She felt her cheeks get warm. Without turning she just raised a hand in acknowledgement and heard them chuckle behind her.

#######

So, three days later she found herself boarding an Air France plane from JFK. Rick had made all the arrangements for her ticket, all she had to do was check in when she got there. Entering the jet she found her seat right away, but decided it must be a mistake. The stewardess asked if there was a problem. "No, I, is this the right seat?" She showed the stewardess her boarding pass.

"Yes, this is the seat assigned to you." The stewardess smiled.

"Uh, thanks." Kate took the seat, feeling like a fraud. As soon as she got settled she called Rick. He picked up almost immediately. "Hey, where are you?"

"I'm on the plane. We haven't taken off yet. You didn't tell me my ticket was in First Class."

"I want you to be comfortable. It's a long flight and you'll be more comfortable when you try to sleep. Oh, by the way, I got the seat next to you, too, so you won't be disturbed."

"Richard! You shouldn't have spent all this money on me."

"I wanted to. Consider it the mobile version of Waldo, just, you know, without me. At least for a while. Hey, I have a Waldo clue for you for Paris, but you'll have to wait until closer to the time you land."

"Sound intriguing. I can't wait to see you."

"Me, too. It feels like forever since I last saw you." His voice got huskier

"Yeah, for me, too."

"See you soon. Love you."

"Love you, too."

She hung up just as the stewardess handed her a glass of champagne. Kate smiled to herself. She was sooo not this girl. The girl who flies off for a long weekend in Paris to meet up with her rich, famous lover. She shook her head, took a sip of champagne, and settled back for the flight.

#######

This Kate decided, was the best flight ever. She was able to sleep comfortably, and although she'd left New York late at night, with the time change she was landing around supper time in France. The plane circled Charles De Gaulle Airport, or Roissy Airport, as the locals call it, as this is the suburb where the airport is located. Rick had told her he was sending a driver for her, since he'd be tied up with a book signing, so it would still be a while before she saw him. He'd sent her a text a little while ago with her Waldo clue. It was, "John, Paul and Ringo floated, but…" She laughed. The answer was obviously George sank, or Georges Cinq (V), one of the most luxurious hotels in Pars.

After retrieving her luggage, she walked toward transportation and saw a group of drivers all holding signs with names on them. She scanned them until she saw 'Beckett' on one of them, and started toward the driver, who was wearing the usual chauffeur cap. He had his head down, but as soon as he looked up, she squealed, dropped her suitcase and ran to him. He, in turn, dropped the sign and caught her in his arms.

She kissed him and kissed him and kissed him. "You're here, you're here! I thought I'd have to wait at least another half hour before I saw you." She laughed and kissed him again. She normally wasn't a fan of PDA's, but right now she just didn't care.

Rick grinned. "I couldn't wait, either, so I asked François, our driver, if I couldn't tag along to get you." He handed his cap over to a driver next to him, who was grinning broadly at them. "Merci, mon ami."

"De rien." It's nothing.

An elderly gentleman wheeled Kate's suitcase up to them with a soft, "Mademoiselle," and a gentle smile.

"Merci beaucoup, monsieur." Kate realized she hadn't used her French in a long time.

"Pas de quoi. C'est l'amour, oui?"

Kate and Rick looked at each other and then back at the man. They both nodded. "Oui."

#######

They walked arm in arm to the car he had waiting. Kate turned to him and said softly, "That's our driver?"

"Francois, yeah. Why?" The man was tall and thin, with a moustache. He was in his 60's at least.

"Leo could take him," Kate said softly.

Rick chuckled. "I believe you're right, but Leo could take most anyone."

"True."

#######

As the car made its way into Paris, they sat with their arms around each other in the back seat. "Hi," Kate said softly, drinking in the features of his face.

"Hi, yourself. God, it's good to see you." Rick kissed her, and then kissed her more deeply and just when things got a little heated, he had pressed her back against the door and his hand was hot on her thigh under her skirt—she had on knee length boots but no stockings-, they broke apart to a motorized sound. Without a word Francois had raised the partition between the front and back seats, giving them some privacy.

They kissed some more, and although it was wonderful to be able to touch him again, she reluctantly pulled back and put her fingers to his mouth. "Maybe we should put this on hold until we get to the hotel. I appreciate the partition, but Francois can still see us, right?"

"Yeah," Rick admitted reluctantly. "I guess you're right. I'll behave until we get to the hotel."

She stroked his face gently. "I'll make it up to you when we get there, okay?"

He brightened. "Yeah? Deal."

#######

The practically fell through the door of the hotel room, kissing the whole way. It had all started in the elevator when the last person had exited and they had the car all to themselves. When they got to their floor, they had almost let the door close again they were so distracted with each other, but Rick put his arm out at the last minute and caught it. They stumbled down the hallway, unwilling to let go of each other. Thank goodness the room wasn't too far down the hall. As they got into the room, Rick threw off his winter coat, and slid hers off her shoulders onto the floor. They stumbled on it and fell in the entryway. Before she knew it, his shirt was undone, her skirt was up around her waist and her blouse and bra were undone (when did that happen?), exposing her breasts for his lips to explore, and her panties were gone…someplace. They made love urgently, almost frantically, just getting the necessary clothing out of the way as quickly as possible. It vaguely crossed her mind that her suitcase was still in the hallway, but at the moment she couldn't have cared less.

When it was all over, they lay on the floor for a few moments trying to recover. Rick raised his head, trying to catch his breath, and said, "Wow, sorry, I really did not mean to attack you the minute we go into the room."

Kate smiled. "Sorry…" she had to drag in a few more breaths before she could continue. "Sorry to hear that, 'cause I sure as hell did." They grinned at each other. She reached up to cup his face and kissed him a few times. "God, I missed you."

"That's exactly what you said right before the first time we had sex, remember?"

"How could I forget? I believe our clothes were in the same state as they are now."

"You have a point."

Rick eased himself off of her, and stood, rearranging his clothing. He held out a hand for her to help her up and helped her with her clothes as well. He went and retrieved her suitcase from the hallway, and then took her hand and led her into the bedroom.

"So," he said softly. "Do we get cleaned up and go find a restaurant, or do we stay here for a while?"

Kate removed her blouse and started unzipping her skirt. "Oh no, we're staying here for a while. I'm not done with you yet."

He grinned and started taking his clothes off as well. "Yes, ma'am." When Kate sat to remove her boots, he put a hand on her wrist. "Leave the boots." They were patent leather with a lot of buckles and they had stiletto heels. She grinned back at him and complied with his request.

#######

Much, much later, finally sated for the moment, they lay quietly in each other's arms. The boots were now on the floor someplace. Kate wiggled her toes a bit, much more comfortable now, although the boots had certainly served their purpose, she thought with a wicked grin.

"I have two more book signings, tomorrow and Saturday," Rick said softly, stroking her back. "You can either come with me or do some exploring on your own while I'm tied up, then we'll go to dinner someplace nice."

"Okay. Maybe I'll come with you to one of them, and explore during the other, I brought my camera with me and I want to take some pictures. How does that sound?"

"Works for me." He was quiet after that for so long she turned her head to see if he was awake. He was.

"Hey," she stoked his face. "Penny for your thoughts."

He surprised her by saying, "Why won't you marry me?"

"Rick." Her voice held a warning.

"No, I'm just curious. You love me right?"

"Yes, I love you." She kissed his chest for emphasis.

"And you believe I truly love you, right?"

"Yeah, I do believe that."

"So, where's the problem?"

"We're fine, aren't we? I love how we are together now, if we get married all that will change."

"I promise you, it won't."

"Eventually you won't want me like this anymore."

Rick snorted. "I will want you like this after I'm six months dead, I promise."

"Well, thanks…and eww. Isn't marriage what got you into trouble twice before?"

"Yes, but that was because I married the wrong people for the wrong reasons. I married Meredith because she was pregnant and I wanted to do the right thing. Meredith is a free spirit who should never be tied down to anyone. It's just not in her to commit. She couldn't even do it for Alexis. It took me a while to learn I couldn't change her. I married Gina because we got along, we were in the same business and I thought Alexis needed a mother figure. Boy, was I wrong about that. Gina led me to believe she was attracted to me and had feelings for me, which, after we were married turned out to be entirely untrue. She barely let me touch her once we were married, and she was too busy with her career to take any notice of Alexis."

"I'm sorry." Kate kissed his chest again and stroked his side for a few moments. The next time she saw Gina she was sorely tempted to punch her in the mouth. She took a breath before asking the big question. "Do you think if you had married Kyra you would still be married to her?"

Rick took a deep breath in and let it out slowly. "I don't know. Who can predict what might have been, but I do know I would have married her for the right reasons, because we loved each other and wanted to spend the rest of our lives with each other. Her mother would have probably been a divisive force in the marriage, so who knows? And if I had been married to Kyra there never would have been an Alexis, and I could _never, never_ wish her away."

"No, of course not." Kate's voice was soft. "But Kyra is the love of your life, right?"

He turned his head to look into her eyes and huffed out a big sigh. "Maybe I thought so at the time. It was a long time ago, but the person I am now is completely different from the person I was then. As people we grow and change. Would Kyra and I have changed together, or would we have grown apart? Who knows? Let me tell you something," he turned on his side dislodging her so she had to maneuver onto her side to look into his eyes. "The day I finished the divorce proceedings with Gina, my _second _divorce, thank you very much, when I walked out of that court house, I made a vow to myself. I vowed I would never marry again unless I found someone who was my complete soul mate, the love of my life, someone whom I wanted to spend the rest of my life with, and beyond, if there is a beyond. I have stuck to that vow. That's when I started playing around, because none of it really mattered to me and I was angry-and yeah, I'm a guy and it was kind of fun, too," he admitted. " Until I met you. I meant it when I said 'third and last.'" He tilted her chin up and kissed her. "_You_ are the love of my life, Katharine Mary Beckett I have never loved _anyone_ the way I love you, and if you don't marry me, I won't marry anyone again. Ever."

Kate's vision blurred and there was a lump in her throat. She cupped the back of his head and kissed him, sniffled, and kissed him again. Then she nodded.

"Yes?" Rick raised an eyebrow. "Is that a yes?"

"Yes, it's a yes. I'll marry you. You're the love of my life, too, you know."

They shared a long kiss, then Rick broke away and let out a loud whoop, which sounded off the walls. "We're getting married! Hallelujah!" Kate laughed.

They made love again and slept a while longer, then they both realized it was almost midnight Paris time and neither had eaten anything for a very long time. Rick ordered room service and they shared it sitting on the bed. Then they took a shower together to clean up and settled back into bed.

"We can go ring shopping tomorrow if you want," Rick's sounded drowsy. "or we can wait until we get back to New York."

"Mmm, whatever you want," Kate was on the verge of sleep.

"When we get back we can put something in the paper."

Kate snorted softly. "Anything but the Post."

"Yes, anything but the Post."

#######

The next day she accompanied him to his book signing, garnering a lot of stares from the crowd when they walked in holding hands. She heard some French "Nikki Heat' references and her picture was taken a few times, but they had agreed they would not announce their engagement until they returned home. So she sat quietly in the front row as he read, in French, an excerpt from the book, and then she sat with him while he did the signing.

On their off-time they walked the streets of Paris, hand in hand, over old cobblestone streets in narrow alleyways, looking into antique shops and finding out of the way bakeries with wonderful coffee. They looked for rings in some of the antique shops, but none seemed to be 'the one' They just happened into a jewelry shop in the Rue Fauborg St. Honore, and there, in the case in the front was a beautiful white gold wedding set, with an emerald cut diamond. A _big_ emerald cut diamond, Kate pointed out. It was simple and elegant, and once she tried it on, that was it. She couldn't stop holding her hand out to look at it, much to Rick's amusement.

She showed him the place where she had stayed during her time in Paris, one of those old hotels with the bird-cage elevator in the middle, in the Rue des Ecoles. Rick vowed they would stay there the next time they came to Paris. Kate just liked the idea that they would return to Paris together.

When they got back to the hotel, Rick checked his phone and said, "Uh oh."

"What?"

"It's from my agent. It says, 'Look out, there's blood in the water.'

Kate frowned. What does that mean?

"I'll have to call him to find out for sure, but I would guess somehow the press knows about our engagement."

"How would they know? We haven't told anyone."

"I suspect the jewelry store may have something to do with this." He called his agent, spoke with him for a few minutes and hung up, looking grim.

"Well, it's what I thought. Somehow the press got wind of our engagement and they plan to ambush us when we land at JFK tomorrow."

"Oh my God. Why can't they just leave us alone?"

"Unfortunately we're the flavor of the day right now. Listen, I have a friend who lives near here. He owns a private jet. I could call him and see if he'd be willing to fly us home. We could beat the press by a couple of hours."

It was tempting, but finally Kate said, "No. I refuse to let them run us off. We'll just go back and face the music. I'm not ashamed of being with you. But, there is one thing."

"What's that?"

"Call Leo."

"Absolutely."

#######

Two Christmases later Kate and Rick lay on the couch in each other's arms with only the Christmas tree lights illuminating the room.

"You know," Rick said softly, stroking her stomach. "As people of some celebrity it behooves us to name our child something that will make them hate us forever, right? Or at least get them beat up in school. I believe produce is the norm for girls, you know, Pear, Orange, Grapes, Tangerine. Tangerine, I like that one. Tangerine Castle, what do you think?"

Kate made a sound like a game show buzzer. "Wrong, sorry, try again."

Undeterred, Rick continued, "And for boys it's mechanical terms like Refrigerator Repairman," He had to stop to let Kate finish laughing, "or something made up, like Doo-Dah."

Kate rubbed his arm affectionately and glanced at their wedding picture on the table next to them. They were cheek to cheek and the photo embodied to Kate all that they felt for each other. "You know, I always thought if I had a girl I'd name her after my mother."

"Absolutely. I thought you'd want that." Rick was serious now.

"But then I thought that although I want to honor my mother, I want our daughter to have her own identity, too."

"Okay, I think that's a wonderful idea."

"What would you think of Lily Johanna?" Kate's voice was so soft he barely heard her, as if she were afraid to present this to him.

"Hmm, Lily Castle. I like it. I think it's perfect."

"Really?" She raised her head to look at him.

"Really. I love it." He kissed her softly on the mouth. "I have a suggestion for a boy."

"What's that?"

"Logan. Logan Castle."

"Logan Richard Castle," Kate corrected him.

"Yeah?"

"Yes."

"Okay, then. " Our children will have to bear the burden of normal names, but it's decided."

They kissed and settled down to gaze at the lights for a while. Rick continued to stroke her stomach. The baby was due in April, so they had a while to wait, but they both decided to be surprised as to its sex.

Kate remembered the day in late August. They had come to the Hamptons for a couple weeks, and it was wonderful. They walked on the beach hand in hand, swam in the surf, and made love anyplace they could find some privacy. True to his word, Rick was just as passionate toward her as he had been before they married. They hadn't actually decided to try for a baby, but when Kate started feeling strangely and was late with her monthly cycle, they drove down to the local drug store and bought one of those test sticks. Once Kate had done the necessary preparations, they decided to leave it for a while and go for a walk on the beach. As they approached the house, Rick said, "I can't wait anymore," and ran ahead of her to the house. He was back out in seconds with the pregnancy stick in one hand and a big grin on the other. "Whoo Hoo!" He shouted. "We're going to have a baby!" He ran out to her and threw his arms around her.

Kate put her hand over his and breathed a sigh of contentment. She marveled that 'happily ever afters' actually do happen. As the song says 'Happiness was found in each other's arms, as expected." He had found his 'third and last," and she had found her 'one and done.'

Fin


End file.
